Daily Gospel Reflection
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February 16, 2022
When Jesus and his disciples arrived at Bethsaida,
people brought to him a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him.
He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village.
Putting spittle on his eyes he laid his hands on the man and asked,
“Do you see anything?”
Looking up the man replied, “I see people looking like trees and walking.”
Then he laid hands on the man’s eyes a second time and he saw clearly;
his sight was restored and he could see everything distinctly.
Then he sent him home and said, “Do not even go into the village.”
Christ’s love and healing know no bounds. The answers to what we pray for may not be immediate. It may not even be the answer for which we had hoped and longed, but one thing is sure, Christ provides life-changing healing in his time. Faithfulness is all that is required.
For most of my adult life, I’ve tried to suppress my fear of the unknown by trying to control every little thing in my life. Despite intellectually understanding that people have little control over many circumstances in our lives, I had to learn the hard way that only Jesus has the power to heal and transform us.
I agonized early on in my marriage when infertility caused tears and frustration. I worried when the company I had worked with for 13 years was going through massive layoffs. I felt grief when I saw my teenage child struggling with anxiety that I couldn’t comfort. Even today, I feel anguish and sadness over the divisiveness I see in our country.
But God has taught me patience through adversity and brought me clarity and healing. Today I am blessed with two beautiful children, and I love my job at ND. As I have learned to manage my own anxiety over the years, I can now share that peace and strength with my son.
I’ve realized that fretting over the unknowns or the distress I feel during times of unease does nothing to bring me closer to Christ. If I trust him, he will take my hand and guide me. I don’t have all the answers, but my life is so much better when I put all my trust and faith in him. I only need to keep my eyes fixed on Jesus.
If we all strive to do this, Christ can give us the healing we so desperately need.
Prayer
Christ Jesus, you touched the eyes of the blind man twice before he was fully cured. Grant us confidence in your persistence in the face of enduring troubles or sin in our lives. Help us to know that you never leave us, that you will continue to heal us, that your love is greater than our weakness. Grant us faith that we will one day see your love for us clearly and distinctly. Amen.
Saint of the Day
Servant of God Julia Greeley was a woman born into slavery, whose heroic dedication to Christian charity inspired the city of Denver. Julia does not yet have an official feast day, but she is featured today in celebration of Black History Month.
Julia Greeley was born in captivity in Hannibal, Missouri. The dates given for her birth range from 1835 to 1855. She lost eyesight in one of her eyes when a slavedriver's whip cut her face across her eye. She was emancipated at the end of the Civil War in 1865. After being employed in St. Louis as a maid, Julia Greeley arrived in the city of Denver to work for a wealthy widow Mrs. Dickerson. Mrs. Dickerson was a former Washington D.C. socialite who married Colorado's first governor, William Gilpin. Julia began working with Mrs. Dickerson and her family in 1879 and was a kind and caring housekeeper for the family.
In 1880, Julia was received into the Catholic Church at Sacred Heart Church in Denver. Quickly, Julia became a fixture of charity in the community. She worked for many different families in the community with love and maternal care. When not working, Julia begged and obtained mattresses, baby carriages, food, and other items for families who needed them. She delivered them at all hours of the day and night. No one who ever asked Julia Greeley for help was ever turned away. This munificence meant that Julia was swindled several times. But, with the wisdom of the saints, Julia knew it was more blessed to give than to receive, and she kept blessing herself and her community by giving.
Julia fasted frequently and received communion daily at Denver's Sacred Heart church. She loved to visit the many convents of religious sisters around Denver, and they had an open door policy for her. In 1901, Julia became a member of the Third Order of St. Francis. Her imitation of Francis was beautifully evident in her love of giving to others.
On June 7, 1918, the feast of the Sacred Heart, Julia died in Denver. She had given away her burial plot to a man who was going to be buried in a pauper's grave. In repayment, Julia was buried in her Franciscan habit and laid in state in Sacred Heart Church. In 2017, Julia's body was exhumed and buried in Denver's Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. She is the first person to be interred in the Cathedral.
Servant of God Julia Greeley, who dedicated her life to loving others fully—pray for us!
Image of Servant of God Julia Greeley above (taken 1916) appears via the Julia Greeley Guild. Visit their website for more information on the canonization process.